Method and machine for making prewelt shoes



Sept. 17, 1946. m r AL 2,407,903

METHOD 'AND MACHINE FOR MAKING PREWELT SHOES.

' Filed April 17, 1943 :5 Sheets-Sheet 1 Sept. 17, 1946. E. QUINN m12,407,903

METHOD AND M CHINE FOR MAKING PRE'WELT SHOES Filed April 17, 1945 aShets-Sheet 2 Sept. 1 7, 1946., E. QUINN ETAL METHOD AND ACHINE FORMAKING PREWELT snofis Filed April 17, 1943 3 Sheets$heet "5 PatentedSept. 17, 1946 METHOD AND MACHINE FOR MAKING PREVVELT SHOES EdwardQuinn, Saugus, and Israel I. Hersey, Beverly, Mass, assignors to UnitedShoe Machinery Corporation, Flemingtcn, N. J., a corporation of NewJersey Application April 17, 1943, Serial No. 483,410

28 Claims.

The present invention relates to improvements in a method for makingshoes and to sewing machines contributing to the ease in which theimproved method may be performed and more particularly to machines forsewing together the marginal portions of a sole and the unattached edgeof a welt in a prewelt shoe assembled ofithe-last, that is, without theuse of a rigid last.

In the manufacture of a prewelt shoe oiT-th'elast, the upper is firstattached to the welt along one edge, leaving the other unattached edgelying along the side of the upper and diverging slightly therefrom.Before the welt can be connected to d the sole, it must be flexed bothat an an le with the side of the upper to bend or straighten the weltabout its lengthwise axis away from the upper and bring it intoflattened position against the sole and also in a widthwise direction todraw the unattached edge of the welt into a configuration which willgive a desirable shape to the finished shoe. A machine for bending thewelt into flattened position to assist in connecting the outsole isdisclosed in United States Letters Patent to Jalbert No. 2,298,384,granted October 13, 1942. l

I To provide the desired shape in the finished shoe constructed withouta last, the sole is cut accurately to size and the unattached edge ofthe welt is brought into regitsry with the soleedge. Machines forconnecting the welt of a prewelted upper with pressure activated cementto a sole cut to size have been used heretofore with some success andact to clamp and squeeze the shoe parts together in a progressiveoperation extending along the projecting edge' portions of the parts. Inclamping the parts together, previously cemented surfaces on the weltand sole are brought into intimate contact so as to cause the surfacesto adhere in the exact relation in which they are clamped. Due to thenature .of. such a progressive cementing operation and to the inherentqualities of the leather materials making up the parts operated upon,particularly when a strongly resilient welt is employed with relativelythin soles, the clamping pressure not only brings the cemented surfacesinto intimate contact, but also tends to squeeze out and elongate thewelt. After the operation has been completed, a reverse tendency ofcontraction in the welt occurs, with the result that the cement bondbetween the parts may be broken if the contraction is unequal or theshoe may become distorted somewhat from unreleased strain, noreadjustments in the materials operated upon being possible after thecementing pressure is released, so long as the cement bond holds.

The objects of' the present invention are to reduce substantially thediiflculties above enumerated while connecting the unattached edgeportion of a welt on a prewelted upper to an outsole and to provide amethod and a machine for manufacturing prewelt shoes without the use ofa last in which all of the advantages of manufacture without the use ofa last will be retained and by which relative strains will be eliminatedas far as practicable in the parts operated upon while being connected.

A further object of the invention i to provide a method and a machinefor the manufacture of prewelt shoes off-the-last in which there is nonecessity for separate cementing operations, the welt being sewn to thesole directly after the welt is attached to the upper. A still furtherob.- ject of the present. invention is to provide a machine in whichcertain steps of an improved prewelt shoe manufacturing method may beperformed while the upper is unsupported on a last and by which asubstantial simplification and reduction may be effected in expense ofmanufacturing shoes of this nature both by a better control and byelimination of operations.

To these ends. the method of the present in.-

vention includes the steps of flexing the welt on a prewelted upper tobend the welt away from the side of the upper and to draw the unattachededge progressively into registry with the edge of a cut sole while theupper is unsupported by a last and sewing continuously with the flexingope erationto form a permanent line of stitching passing through thewelt and sole outside the upper. During the sewing operation, the partsare alternately clamped and released, thus enabling any strains set upwhile clamping torbe distrib uted evenly in the shoe parts whenreleased. Pressure activated cements now in common 1156 require acontinuousapplication of pressure in the direction of the thickness ofthe work so that no release is possible. When connecting the welt to thesole with a line of stitches outside the line of attachment of the weltto the upper read- .lllstinent and relative movementmay take place urinrel ase b tween the edg o the We l; which is attached to the upper andthe sole to an extent not possible where cement is employed.

Another advantage obtainable with a sewing operation is a better controlof work food than in cementing with no release. As a result, a sewn shoeis constructed with a minimum in.- tensity of internal strains producedduring manufacture and the shoe parts, therefore, are enabled to conformmore easily with a predetermined shape either of a manufacturing last orthe wearers foot. Also, by avoiding cementing operations, an entire stepin the method of manufacture is eliminated with corresponding economiesin cost.

An important feature of the invention also resides in a sewing machinehaving work feeding means, a work support shaped to enter the creasebetween the welt and upper, a presser foot for clamping and releasingthe work to enable relative strain adjusting movements between the weltand sole during each ewing cycle and a back gage for guiding the outeredges of the parts into registry, together with means acting to draw thewelt uniformly against the back gage in advance of the point ofoperation of the needle, the sole being led against the back gagemanually in the usual way. Whenthe presser foot releases the work, theshoe parts are enabled to redistribute the strains set up in them whileclamped so that the only strains within the work operated upon are thoseproduced by flexing the welt and upper into the desired shape,

' the degree of elongation and contraction while the parts arecompressed and released being reduced to a minimum.

In a preferred form of this feature of the invention, the work feedingmeans includes a work penetrating awl and the welt drawing meanscomprises a pointed member or claw acting on an unsewed portion of thewelt to draw it against the back gage before the awl enters the work ineach sewing cycle. As herein disclosed, the claw acts'on. the welt auniform distance from the Y outer, unattached welt edge at a locationdetermined by a ga e cooperating with the claw. In order to obtain thebest results with this form of the invention, mechanisms are providedfor actuating the pointed member both to penetrate the welt and to causethe welt to be drawn against the back gage during each sewing cycle. Toinsure that the welt will be led into the machine under fully relaxedcondition at the sewing point or with a predetermined tension orcompression lengthwise of the welt, the pointed member is moved with thewelt during work feed through a distance greater than the length of workfeed in each sewing cycle.

In a simplified form of machine embodying this feature of the invention,the welt drawing means comprises a hooked member entering between thesole and welt in advance of the sewing point. In this simplified form,suitable means are provided for retracting the hook member just beforethe seam is completed to allow the insertion of the final stitch inoverlapping relation to the first stitch of the seam.

These and other features of the invention including-certa n novel andimproved constructions and arrangements of parts are hereinafterdescribed in the following detailed specification and more particularlypointed out in the ap- "pended claims.

In the drawings,

Fig. 1 is a view in front elevation of certain essential parts of a shoesewing machine embodying features of the present invention according toits preferred form;

Fig. 2 is a detail sectional ViBW' at the heel end of a prewelted shoeupper having an ordinary construction and indicating the nature of onetype of fiexure imparted to the Welt during shoe manufacture;

Fig. 3 is a perspective view of a nearly completed shoe with the soleand other parts broken away to illustrate more clearly the nature of theconstruction in which the present method and machine are employed;

Fig. 4 is a view in side elevation, partly broken away, of the machineparts illustrated in Fig, 1, including the shuttle with a prewelt shoeshown in section;

Fig. 5 is a front sectional detail view of certain parts. shown in Figs.1 and 4, taken along the line V-V of Fig. 4;

Fig. 6 is a detail side sectional view on an enlarged scale illustratingthe operationof the welt drawing claw at a time in each sewing cyclejust before the feed takes place;

Fig. 7 is a detail plan sectional view of the same parts showing theposition of the work before the feed takesplace;

Fig. 8 is a detail side view similar to Fig. 6 but illustrating the clawand parts operated upon at the end of'the work feeding operation;

Fig. 9 is a detail plan View, similar to Fig. '7, of the claw and shoeparts operated upon after the feed has taken place; j

Fi 10 is a detail view in side elevation, and partly in section,illustrating a modified form of construction and its manner of operationon the work, adapted for use in the sewing machine ing to the usualpractice, after assembling the parts of an upper 2, a Welt strip similarto that indicated in the drawings at 4 is attached along one edge by aline of stitching 6 to the bottom edge of the upper, When the preweltedupper is to be connected to an outsole 8 by anoff-thelast method ofmanufacture, the outsole is cut accurately to the exact size required bythe finished shoe. The welt which, when originally attached to theupper, lies along the outer surface of the upper with its unattachededge diverging slightly from the upper, as indicated by broken lines inFig. 2, is then flexed to bend the welt outwardly along a lengthwiseaxis to bring it .into the full line straightened position where it willlie more nearly in parallel relation with the sole 8 and to draw theunattached edge in a direction widthwise of the welt into registry withthe edge of the sole. Ordinarily the parts are temporarily connected inthis relation by pressure activated cement, such as semi-cured rubber orlatex. Thereafter, the parts are permanently connected by an outseam Hipassing through the projecting portions of the sole and the unattachededge portions of the welt with a continuous seam extending entirelyaround the shoe and terminating "with the final stitch overlapping thefirst stitch The machine ordinarily employed for inserting the stitchesconnecting the sole and welt of a prewelt shoe is of the lockstitchtype, and as illustrated in the drawings, includes a curved hook needlei2, acurved awl M, a shuttle !6 (Fig. 4), a work support 18, a presserfoot 29. a looper 2|, and other stitch forming devices similar to thosedisclosed in United States Letters Patent to Ashworth No. 1,169,909,granted February 1, 1916, and to Ashworth and Whitaker No. 2,271,611,granted February 3, 1942. In such a machine, the work is clamped andcompressed in the direction of its thickness by the operation of th worksupport and presser foot. The work is released during the back feedingmovement of the work support and presser foot relatively to the work orwhile the awl l4 engages the work. In'the machine of Patent No.1,169,909, the work is fed by the awl while the awl is moving in thedirection of the seam line from a position a stitch length away from theneedle into alignment with the needle, and in the machine of Patent No.2,271,- 611, the awl and needle remain in alignment at all times and thework is fed while clamped by the work support and presser foot, the worksupport and presser foot being back fed while the awl is in engagementwith the work.

When pressure activated cement is employed to connect the flattened weltto the sole of a prewelt shoe progressively around the edge of the soleby compressing the parts in the direction of their thickness to bringthe cemented surfaces into intimate contact, a progressive wave ofelongation and contraction in those parts is set up, as above explained,with the result that as the cementing operation continues withoutrelease of the strains thus produced, the parts may cause an occasionalbreak in the cement bond connecting them or may become distorted fromtheir intended finished shapes. These difliculties are particularlytroublesome when a relatively soft,

thick welt is employed and if the shoe is completed directly after thecementing operation by sewing the welt to the outsole with a permanentseam, there is little or no possibility of re-establishing the propershape or relations in the parts without further treatment. The usualprocedure is to insert a last within the completed shoe and to processthe shoe by tempering or heatingthe parts to an extent which willrelease the strains.

In order to practise the method of the present invention by the use ofthe illustrated sewing machine, the sole is not temporarily connected bycement to the flattened edge of welt before sewing, but these parts inunconnected relation are presented to the sewing machine and the presserfoot lowered to clamp the parts against the work support, the presserfoot compressing the parts and holding them firmly while th first andsubsequent stitches are being inserted. Between the times the stitchesare inserted, the clamping pressure on the parts is intermittentlyreleased to enable feeding movement to take place and the welt and soleare progressively flexed and guided into registry with each otheragainst a back gage 22.

To insure that accurate registry of the edges throughout the length ofthe seam can be accomplished uniformly on a manufacturing basis, afterthe unattached edge of the welt has been bent outwardly to bring thewelt into flattened condition, the machine embodying the presentinvention is provided with a U-shaped claw 24 mounted on a supportingarm 26 and formed with a welt penetrating point 28 acting to engage thegrain surface of the welt between the unattached edge and the line ofstitching 6 which connects the shoe upper 2 to the welt. The claw isactuated during each sewing cycle to penetrate the welt just in front ofthe line of the seam inserted by the stitch forming devices (see Fig.'7), to flex the welt rearwardly with widthwise pressure against theback gage 22 until the claw point is in line with the seam and also tomove with the welt during feeding movements of the shoe. The clawengages the welt at a location substantially an even multiple of astitch length in advance of the sewing point lengthwise of the seam anddisengages the welt during formation of each stitch, the parts operatedupon being clamped only adjacent th sewing point. The a-wl thenpenetrates the welt by entering the indentation formed by the claw. Bydisengaging the claw from the welt while each stitch is being insertedand while'the work is clamped, the strains in the welt set up by theclaw are released intermittently. The claw engages the welt just beforethe presser foot releases the work so that the strains set up by theclamping'pressure of the presser foot on the welt also are releasedafter each stitch has been inserted and during feeding movements. Duringfeeding movements, the claw necessarily engages the welt and imparts toit only that amount of strain required to flex the welt into conformitywith the configuration of the sole edge, which amount of strain ismaintained in the welt by the stitches. The point of engagement of theclaw with the welt being in front of the line of the seam, and inadvance of the sewing point, causes the same strains to be setup inthewelt as are maintained by the stitches and no others. Also, where awelt of strongly resilient material is employedwhich is longated by thepressure of the presser foot, the claw is moved a distance slightlygreater than the length of feed imparted by the work feeding means sothat the clamping pressure of the presser foot will cause less temporaryelongation in the welt.

To actuate the claw, a spindle 35, best shown in Figs. 4 and 6, issecured at one end to the claw and rotates along its central portion ina bearing in the upper end of the arm 26; At the other end of thespindle, there is secured an arm 32 pivotally connected to the upper endof a push rod 3s slidingly mounted in a perforated lug on a block 36 towhich the arm 25 is connected. The block 33 is hingedly mounted on asecond block 38 corresponding to that described in Patent No. 1,169,909,as supporting the channeling knife of the patented machine.

To cause the point 23 of the claw to penetrate to disengage the work,the lower end of the rod 34, is acted upon by an elongated cam barslidable a correspondingly shaped opening in the supporting block Oneend of the cam bar 4%} is reduced and surrounded by a sleeve M to whichit is so fastened as to permit partial rotation of the sleeve. Thesleeve is pivotally connected to a swivel block d2 also pivotallyconnected to an a m 24 forming the central member of a universal joint.The lower end of the rod 36 is held against the cam surface on the bar43 by a coil s ring stretched between a projection on the rod 3d and apin on the block 35. The arm M is in turn secured to the forward end ofa laterally moving lever d? (referred to in Patent No. 1,169,999 by thereference 9'2), which lever is a part of the mechanism for actuating thelooper 2!. The movements of the looper actuating lever 4's and the shapeof the cam surface on the bar '40 in moving from the solid to thedot-dash position of Fig. 5, cause the claw 24 to penetrate thewelt ashort distance just before the presser foot releases the work in eachsewing cycle. Movement in the reverse direction causes the claw todisengage the welt after the presser foot has again clamped the work.

For bringing the welt after being engaged by the claw into registry withthe sole edge and against the back gage 22, the block 36 is;rocked onits hinge mounting which consists of a shculdered screw 48 passingloosely through the block 38 into threaded engagement with the block 36.A step is cut in the forward face of the block 38 and engaged by therounded upper end of an arm 56 having an integral shaft portionrotatably mounted in a projection of the main machine frame indicated at52. The end of the shaft portion of the arm 55 is suitably shaped toreceive ,an an. clamped thereto by a bolt 56. Pivotally connected withthe arm as i a bent link connecting the arm 54 with the arm of a lever56 which, in the machine of Patent No. 1,169,909, comprises a part ofthe mechanism for actuating the presser foot to cause the pressure ofthe foot on the work to be relieved and to clam the work during eachsewing cycle. The lower end of the lever 5G is slotted and the link 58is adjustably connected to the lever by a pivot bolt 52 clamped in theslot to enable the welt drawing movement of the claw to be regulatedaccording to the nature of the work and quality of the welt operatedupon.

To keep the block 35 in engagement with the arm.

' trate the welt just after a stitch has inserted and to draw the weltrearwardly simulaneously with the release of the work by the presscrfoot. During feeding movement of the work, the welt is held against theback gage by the claw, the parts remaining in this position until thepresser foot again clamps the work and holds the welt with itsunattached projecting edge registering with the sole edge. With thistiming of the parts, the only restraint on the welt after release of thework the .pressure of the back gage. The welt, therefore, is otherwisefree toexpand or contract in any direction about the last insertedstitch as a center and to adjust itself so that a minimum number ofstrains are set up relatively to the shoe sole. I

In the machine of Patent No. 1,169,999, a channeling knife supportingblock corresponding to the block 38 is moved in the direction of feedduring feeding movements of the awl and against the l position of thewelt, the welt tending to swing forwardly away from the back gage eitherdue to the shape of the shoe operated upon or to the elongation in theprojecting unattached edge of the welt under the pressure of the presserfoot.

In order to determine the certainty the distance from the edge at whichthe claw penetrates the welt, regardless of the position of the welt inadvance of the sewing point, the supporting arm 25 on which the claw ispivoted leprovided with a gage shoulder El acting on theunatunattachededge of the welt into line with theback gage, as in Figs. 8 and 9. Atthe same time that the penetrating and rearward movements of the claware occurring, the claw is moved with the, welt in the direction of feedfrom the position of Fig. 7 to that of Fig. 9, after which the claw isdisengaged during the insertion of the succeeding stitch.

After the first few stitches are inserted in the shoe parts presented tothe machine, the operation of the claw causes the welt to be drawnagainst the back gage 22 without further atten-,

tion bythe operator. If the sole is held. against the back gage, theunattached Welt edge and the sole edge will be brought into accurateregistry throughout the sewing operation.

The machine is useful not only to assemble prewelt shoe partsWithout'the necessity of connecting them in a preliminary cementingoperation, but also may be employed to advantage in other types of Workor where a prewelted upper and sole are already temporarily connected.Where the parts operated upon are already connected, the operation ofthe claw causes both parts to be directed in the right relation-to theback gage at all times so that after the first few stitches, the seammay be completed with little or no atten= tion by the operator inguiding the work.

A second simpler form of the'machine for performing the same steps ofthe method is illustrated in Figs. 10, 11 and 12. In this form'ofmachine, a hooked welt engaging finger 68 passes 7 between the sole 8and welt i on the pre-Welted upper 2 while the grain surface of. thewelt is moving along the work support i8 of the stitcher.

to the upper in advance of the sewing point towards the back gage 22 andto hold the unattached edge of the welt against the back gage. Thelocation of the finger is such that the welt may pass without restrainttowards the sewing point of the machine between the hooked end of thefinger and the back gage except for the guiding and drawing action. ofthe finger on the welt. If the sole 8 of the shoe is held by theoperator at all times against the back gage, accurate registry of theunattached welt edge with the sole edge will be insured. V

The finger 68 has a shank passing transversely to the line of work feedand loosely through a; sleeve ill clamped within a lug 72 extending froma stationary arin M forming a portion of the Inachine frame, as inPatent No. 1,169,909. During sewing operations. the hooked finger isheld locked connecting the parts is completed, the shank of the fingeris surrounded by a compression spring 16 acting at one end on the sleeveIll and at the other end on a knurled collar 18 secured to the end ofthe finger shank. When the finger is rotated to cause the hooked end tolie parallel to the surface of the sole, the spring 16 acts to retractthe finger to the position of Fig. 12. To lock the finger in forwardposition during sewing against the force of the spring 16, the shank ofthe finger has projecting from one side a pin 8!] and the sleeve H! hasa bayonet slot 82 in which the pin 86 slides. The locking portion of thebayonet slot is at the forward end of the sleeve so that when the shankis rotated to bring the pin into the locking portion of the slot, thehooked end will be swung downwardly to engage the inner edge of the weltwhich is attached to the upper. When the hooked finger is rotatedmanually in the opposite direction, the pin moves out of the lockingportion of the bayonet slot, and the finger is moved into parallelrelation with the sole and quickly retracted by the action of the spring16. With skillful manipulation, retraction of the finger may beaccomplished'without stopping the machine,

As has been stated, the practice of the present method comprises flexinthe welt to bend the edge not attached to the upper away from the sideof the upper from the broken line position of Fig. 2 into the solid lineposition and to draw the unattached edge in a direction widthwise of thewelt progressively into registry with the edge of the sole 8. It ispossible to flex the welt in the present sewing machine both to bend theunattached edge by the wedging action of the work support away from theupper and to draw the edge of the welt widthwise into registry with thesole edge but a more uniform result is obtainable if a machine such asthat disclosed in the patent to J albert No. 2,298,384, granted October13, 1942, is employed to bend the welt away from the side of the upperbefore the sewing operation is undertaken. When the J albert machine isemployed, the principal flexure of the welt required in the practice ofthe present method is in drawing the unattached edge widthwise of thewelt into registry with the sole edge but in some instances, the Weltmay be bent or flattened still further during sewing. When a continuousstrip of welt is attached along its edge to an upper and is bent intothe position illustrated in the solid line of Fig. 2, the provision of asole of the appropriate size to be sewed to the welt may be facilitatedby bringing the welted upper and a selected cut sole together. If thesole is selected which has a slightly larger peripheral edge than thelength of unattached edge on the welt, after bein bent outwardly, theassembling operation may be completed with the sole and welt edges inaccurate registry.

The seam according to the present method is started at a point indicatedby the reference numeral a l just in advance of one end of the sole.After matching the welted upper with a slightly larger sole, as well aspracticable by eye, the sewing operation is carried around the adjacentcurved end 81, which is the heel end for the shoe illustrated, andcontinued along the side 86 of the shoe sole shank. The seam begins tocurve at the other end 88 of the sole until that end is finished. Aftersewing around the second end 855 of the sole, which is the toe end forthe illustrated shoe, the length of welt between the point 84 and apoint 96 between the second end of the sole and the relatively straightportionalong the other side 92 is stretched to make up the deficiencyresulting from selecting a sole of slightly greater peripheral edgelength. The deficiency is absorbed readily by the relatively long,straight unsewed length of welt remaining, whereas if it were necessaryto take up the deficiency about either end of the shoe, a relativelyshort length of welt would remain unsewed which would be insufficient toenable the welt to stretch to the extent of the deficiency. For the bestresults, the last sewed side 92 of the shoe shank should be the outsideof the shank which is relatively straighter than the inside edgeportion.

When sewing the sole and welt in the machines embodying the presentinvention, it is not necessary that they be previously connected bycement, and in the form of machine employing a hooked finger enteringbetween the parts, they obviously should not be cemented. However, thefull advantage of a cemented and sewed connection can be obtained withthe illustrated method and machines if green uncured cement only is usedand the cement allowed to cure after the seam is completed.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed is:

1. The method of making a prewelt shoe which comprises flexing the welton a prewelted upper in a manner to bring the unattached edge away fromthe side of the upper and to cause the unattached welt edge to be drawnprogressively into registry with the edge of a SOle while the upper isunsupported by a last, and sewing continuously with the flexingoperation to form a permanent line of stitching passing through the weltand sole outside the upper.

2. The method of making a prewelt shoe which comprises flexing the welton a prewelted upper in a manner to bring the unattached edge away fromthe side of the upper and to cause the unattached welt'edge to be drawnprogressively into registry with the edge of a sole while the upper isunsupported by a last, compressing the welt in the direction of itsthickness to clamp it against the sole with the welt in flexedcondition, intermittently inserting stitches connecting the welt andsole while the parts are compressed, and releasing the parts betweenstitch inserting operations to sew the parts together inrelati'velyunrestrained condition with a continuous seam.

3. The method of making a prewelt shoe which comprises flexing the welton a prewelted upper to bring the unattached edge away from the side ofthe upper and to cause the unattached welt edge to be drawnprogressively into registry with the edge of a sole while the upper isunsupported by a last, compressing the welt in the direction of itsthickness to clamp it against the sole with the welt in flexedcondition, intermittently inserting stitches connecting the welt andsole While the parts are compressed, and releasing the compression ofthe welt between stitch inserting operations and applying a widthwisepressure to the welt at a point between the unattache edge and the lineof attachment with the upper w'hilethe thickness compression is releasedto urge the unattached edge against a sole guiding back gage whereby theparts may be connected together in relatively unrestrained conditionwith a continuous seam.

4. The method of making a. prewelt shoe which comprises flexing acontinuous welt of a prewelted upper to bendthe unattached edge awayfrom the side of the upper, and to cause the unattached welt edge to bedrawn progressivelyinto registry with the edge of a sole having aperiphery larger than the length of the welt while the upper isunsupported by a last, starting a seam in advance of one end of thesole, sewing around that end and along a first side edge of the solewhile drawing the unattached welt edge progressively into registry withthe sole edge, sewing around the other end of the sole to cause theentire length of welt extending along the second side edge of the soleto be stretched before the stitches are inserted along said second sideedge, and sewing along said second side edge to complete the seam withthe first and final stitches overlapping,

' 5. The method of making a prewelt shoe which comprises flexing acontinuous welt of aprewelted upper in a manner to bend th unattachededge away from the side of the upper, and to cause the unattached weltedge to be drawn progressively into registry with the edge of a solewhich is concave along one side of the shank and substantially straightalong the other side of the shank, starting a seam near one end of thestraight side, sewing around one end of the sole and along the concaveside, sewing around the other end of the sole to cause the entire lengthof welt extending along the substantially straight side to be stretchedbefore the stitches are inserted, and sewing along the straight side ofthe sole edge lastly tobring the first and final stitches of the seaminto overlapping relation.

6. The method of sewing progressively the projecting marginal portionsof a cut sole to a con- 0 tinuous welt on a prewelted shoe upper withthe first and final stitches of a seam overlapping while the upper isunsupported on a last which coniprises providing a sole having aperiphery greater than that of the unattached edge of the welt,

starting a seam in advance of one end of the shoe, sewing around thatend and along one side of the shoe while drawing the welt edgeprogressively into registry with the sole edge and sew ing around theother end of the shoe to cause the entire length of welt extending alongthe other side of the shoe to be stretched before the stitches areinserted.

7. The method of sewing progressively the projecting marginal portionsof a cut sole to a continuous welt on a prewelted shoe upper with thefirst and final stitches of the resulting seam overlapping while theupper is unsupported on a last which comprises providing a sole having aperiphery greater than that of the unattached edge of the welt, startingthe seam between the outside of the shoe shank and the adjacent end of ashoe, sewing next around said adjacent end and along the insideof theshoe shank while drawing the welt edge progressively into registry 4with the sole edge and sewing around the other end of the shoe to causethe entire length of welt extending along the outside of. the shoe shankto be stretched before the stitches are inserted.

8. The method of sewing progressively the projecting marginal portionsof a, cut sole having a curved side and a relatively straight side tothe projecting edge of a continuous welt on a prewelt shoe upper withthe first and final stitches of the resulting seam overlapping while theupper is'unsupported on a last which comprises providing a sole having aperiphery greater than that of the unattached edge of thewelt, startingthe seam between the relatively straight side of the sole edge and theadjacent end of the sole, sewing next around the adjacent end and alongthe curved side of the sole edge while drawing the welt edgeprogressively into registry with the sole edge, and sewing around theother end of the sole to cause the entire length of welt extend- 12 7 inalong the relatively straight side edge of the sole to be stretchedbefore the stitches are inserted.

9. In a machine for sewing the marginal portions of a shoe sole to theprojecting edge portions of the welt on a prewelted upper while'unsupported by a last, the combination with stitch forming devicesincluding a needle, work feeding means, a work support shaped to enterthe crease between the welt and the upper, a presser foot for clampingand releasing the sole and welt to enable movement of the work on thework support and the parts to become connected together in relativelyunrestrained condition, and a back gage for guiding the outer edge ofthe welt and sole into registry, of means acting to draw the weltuniformly against the back gage.

10, In a machine for sewing the marginal portions of a shoe sole to theprojecting edge pcrtions of the welt on a prewelted upper whileunsupported by a last, the combination with stitch forming devicesincluding a needle, 2. work feed ing awl, a work support shaped to enterthe crease between the welt and the upper, a presser foot for clampingand releasing the sole and welt to enable movement of the work on thework support the parts to become connected together in relativelyunrestrained condition, and a back gage for guiding the outer edge ofthe welt and sole into registry, of a welt engaging pointed memberlocated along the line of feed inadvance of the needle and actuated todraw an unsewed portion the welt only uniformly against the back gagebefore the awl penetrates the work in each sewing cycle.

ll. In machine for sewing the marginal portions of a shoe sole to theprojecting edge portions of the welt on a prewelted upper whileunsupported by a last, the combination with stitch forming devicesincluding a needle, work feeding means, a work support shapedto enterthe crease between the welt and the upper, a presser foot for clampingand releasing the sole and welt to enable movement of the work on thework support, and a back gage opposite the point of needle operation forguiding the outer edges of the welt and sole into registry, of a weltengaging member located in advance of the point of needle operation todraw an unsewed portion of the welt only uniformly against the backgage.

12. In a machine for sewing the marginal portion of a shoe sole to theprojecting edge portions of the welt on a prewelted upper whileunsupported by a last, the combination with stitch forming devicesincluding a needle, work feeding means, a work support shaped to enterthe crease between the welt and the upper, a presser foot for clampingand releasing the sole and welt to enable movement of the work on thework support and the parts tobecome connected together in relativelyunrestrained condition, and a back gage for guiding the outer edge ofthe welt and sole into registry, of a welt penetrating pointed memberlocated in advance of the needle to draw an unse'wed portion of the weltonly uniformly against the back gage during each sewing cycle, and meansfor gaging the distance from the outer welt edge at which the pointedmember penetrates the welt.

13. In a machine for sewing the marginal portions of a shoe sole to theprojecting edge portions of the welt on a prewelted upper whileunbetween the welt and the upper, a presser foot for clamping andreleasing the sole and welt to enable movement of the Work on the Worksupport and the parts to become connected together in relativelyunrestrained condition, and a back gage for guiding the outer edge ofthe welt and sole into registry, of a welt penetrating pointedmemberlocated in advance of the needle to draw an unsewed portion of thewelt only uniformly against the back gage during each sewing cycle, anda gage for causing the pointed member to penetrate the grain surface ofthe Welt inline with the seam inserted by the needle.

14. In a machine for sewing the marginal portions of a shoe sole to theprojecting edge portions of the welt on a prewelted upper whileunsupported by a last, the combination with stitch forming devicesincluding a needle, work feeding means, a work support shaped to enterthe crease 1 between the welt and the upper, a presser foot for clampingand releasing the sole and welt to enable movement of the work on thework support and the parts to become connected together in relativelyunrestrained condition, and a back gage for guiding the outer edge ofthe welt and sole into. registry, of a welt penetrating claw located inadvance of the point of needle operation, an arm on which the claw ismounted to enable the claw to be moved bodily while engaging the welt,and mechanisms for actuating the claw to penetrate the welt and foractuating the arm to cause the welt to be drawn against the back gageduring each sewing cycle.

15. In a machine for sewing the marginal portions of a shoe sole to theprojecting edge'portions of the welt on a prewelted upper whileunsupported by a last, the combination with stitch forming devicesincluding a needle, work feeding means, a work support shaped to enterthe crease between the welt and the upper, a presser foot for clampingand releasing the sole and welt to enable movement of the work on thework support and the parts to become connected together in relativelyunrestrained condition, and a back gage for guiding the outer edge ofthe welt and sole into registry, of a claw acting in advance of thepoint of needle operation to penetrate the grain surface of the welt, anarm on which the claw is mounted to enable the claw to be moved bodilyin each sewing cycle while engaging the welt in a direction to draw thewelt against the back gage. and a shoulder on the arm engaging the outerwelt edge to cause the claw to penetrate the welt in line with the seaminserted by the needle.

16. In a machine for sewing the marginal portions of a shoe sole to theprojecting edge portions of the welt on a prewelted upper while unsup-'ported by a last, the combination with stitch forming devices includinga needle, work feeding means, a Work support shaped to enter the creasebetween the welt and the upper, a presser foot for clamping andreleasing the sole and welt to enable movement of the work on the worksupport and the parts to become connected together in relativelyunrestrained condition, and a back gage for guiding the outer edge ofthe welt and sole into registry, of a claw acting in advance of thepoint of needle operation to penetrate the grain surface of the welt, anarm on which the claw is mounted to enable the claw to be moved bodilyin each sewing cycle while engaging the welt in a direction to draw thewelt against the back gage, a shoulder on the arm engaging the outerwelt edge to cause the claw to penetrate the welt in 14 line with thseam inserted by the needle, and yielding means for urging the arm in adirection to cause the shoulder to follow the unattached edge of thewelt.

17. In a machine for sewing the marginal portions of a shoe sole to theprojecting edge portions of the welt on a prewelted upper whileunsupported by a last, the combination with stitch forming devicesincluding a needle, work feeding means, a work support shaped to enterthe crease between the welt and the upper, a presser foot for clampingand releasing the sole and welt to enable movement of the work on thework support and the parts to become connected together in relativelyunrestrained condition, and a back gage for guiding the outer edge ofthe welt and sole into registry, of a welt penetrating claw located inadvance of the point of needle operation, an arm on which the claw ispivotally mounted, an actuating rod connected with the claw and arrangedparallel to the arm, mechanism for moving the rod to cause the claw topenetrate the welt, and mechanism for actuating the arm while the clawengages the welt to draw the welt against the back gage.

18. In a machine for sewing the marginal portions of a shoe sole to theprojecting edge portions of the welt on a prewelted upper, thecombination with stitch forming devices including a needle and a needlelooper, mechanisms for actuating the stitch forming devices, a worksupport, a presser foot, mechanism for actuating the presser foot toclamp and release the sole and welt, and a back gage for guiding theouter edges of the welt and sole into registry, of a welt penetratingclaw located in advance of the point of needle operation, an arm onwhich the claw is mounted, connections between the looper mechanism andthe claw for actuating the claw towards and from the welt, andconnections between the presser foot mechanism and the arm upon whichthe claw is mounted for moving the arm to draw the welt against the backgage during each sewing cycle.

19.121 a machine for sewing the marginal portions of a shoe sole to theprojecting edge portions of the welt on a prewelted upper whileunsupported by a last, the combination with stitch forming devicesincluding a needle, a work feeding awl, a work support shaped to enterthe crease between the welt and the upper, a presser foot for clampingand releasing the sole and welt to enable movement of the work on thework support and the parts to become connected together in relativelyunrestrained condition, and a back gage for guiding the outer edge ofthe welt and sole into registry, of a welt engaging pointed memberlocated along the line of feed in advance of the needle and actuated todraw an unsewed portion of the welt only uniformly against the back gagebefore the awl penetrates the work in each sewing cycle and to move withthe welt during feeding movements of the awl.

20. In a machine for sewing the marginal portions of a shoe sole to theprojecting ed e portions of the welt on a prewelted upper whileunsupported by a last. th combination with stitch forming devicesincluding a needle, work feeding means, a work support shaped to enterthe crease between the welt and the upper, a presser foot for clampingand releasing the sole and welt to enable movement of the work on thework support and the parts to become co nected together in relativelyunrestrained condition. and a back gage for guiding the outer edge ofthe welt and sole into registry, of a welt penetrating claw located inadvance of the point of needle operation, an arm on which the claw ismounted to enable the claw to be moved bodily while engaging the welt inthe direction of the feed and transversely of the feed, and mechanismsfor actuating the claw to penetrate the welt and the arm to cause theWelt to be drawn by the claw against the back gage before the awlpenetrates the welt in each sewing cycle, and means for actuating thearm to move the claw in the direction of feed after the awl penetratesthe work.

21. In a machine for sewing the marginal portions of a shoe sole to theprojecting edge portions of the welt on a prewelted shoe upper, "thecombination with stitch forming devices including a needle, a needlelooper, a work penetrating and feeding awl, mechanisms for actuating thestitch forming devices, a Work support,

mechanism for actuating the presser foot to clamp and release the soleand welt and a back gage for guiding the outer edge faces of the weltand sole into registry, of a welt penetrating claw located in advance ofthe point of needle operation, an arm on which the claw is mounted,connections between the looper mechanism and the claw for actuating theclaw towards and from the welt, connections between the presser footmechanism and the arm upon which the claw is mounted for moving the clawto draw the welt against the back gage, and other connections betweenthe awl feeding mechanism and the arm to move the claw in thedirectionof feed while engaging the welt during each sewing cycle.

22. In a machine for sewing the marginal portions of a shoe sole to theprojecting edge portions of the welt on a prewelted upper whileunsupported by a last, the combination with stitch forming devicesincluding a needle, work feeding means, a work support shaped to enterthe crease between the welt and the upper, a presser foot for clampingand releasing the sole and Welt to enable movement of the work on thework support and the parts to become connected to ether in relativelyunrestrained condition, and a back gage for guiding the outer edge ofthe welt and sole into registry, of a hook ended finger passing betweenunsewed portions of the shoe sole and the welt with its hook endengaging the inner edge of the welt in advance of the point of needleoperation to draw the outer edge of the welt uniformly against the backgage.

23. In a machine for sewing the marginal portions of a shoe sole to theprojecting edge portions of the welt on a prewelted upper whileunsupported by a, last, the combination with stitch forming devicesincluding a needle, work feeding means, a work support shaped. to enterthe crease between the welt and the upper, a presser foot for clampingand releasing the sole and welt to enable movement of the work on thework support and the parts to become connected together in relativelyunrestrained condition, and a back gage for guiding the outer edge ofthe welt sole and into registry, of a hook ended finger passingbetweenunsewed portions of the shoe sole and the welt with its hook endengaging the inner edge of the welt in advance of the point of needleoperation to draw the outer edge of the welt uniformly against the backgage, and means for retracting the finger from between the shoe sole andwelt to enable the seam to be completed with its ends overlapping.24.111. a machine for sewing the marginal i6 portions of a shoe sole tothe projecting edge portions of the welt on a prewelted upper whileunsupported by a last, the combination with stitch forming devicesincluding a needle, work feeding means, a work support shaped to enterthe crease between the welt and the upper, a presser foot for clampingand releasing the sole and welt to enable movement of the work on thework support and the parts to become connected together in relativelyunrestrained condition, and a back gage for guiding the outer edge ofthe welt and sole into registry, of a hook endedfinger passing betweenunsewed portions of the shoe sole and the welt with its hook endengaging the inner edge of the welt in advance of the point of needleoperation to draw theouter edge of the welt uniformly against the backgage, manually operated means for locking the finger, and means actingwhen the finger is unlocked to withdraw it from between the sole andwelt.

25. In a machine for sewing the marginal portions of a shoe sole to theprojecting edge portions of the welt on a prewelted upper while,

together in relatively unrestrained condition,

and a back gage for guiding the outer edge of the welt and sole intoregistry, of a hook ended finger passing between unsewed portions of theshoe sole and the welt with its hook end engaging the inner edge of thewelt in advance of the point of needle operation to draw the outer edgeof the welt uniformly against the back gage, manually operated means forswinging the finger towards the sole to enable the hook end to bewithportions of the welt on a prewelted upper while unsupported by alast, the combination with stitch forming devices including a needle,work feeding means, a work support shaped to enter the crease betweenthe welt and the upper, a presser foot for clamping and releasing thesole and welt to enable movement of the work on the 'work support andthe parts to become connected together in relatively unrestrainedcondition, and a back gage for guiding the outer edge of the welt andsole into registry, of a hook ended finger passing'between unsewedportions of the shoe sole and the welt with its hook end engaging theinner edge of the welt in advance of the point of needle operation todraw the outer edge of the welt uniformly against the back gage,manually operated means for swinging the finger towards the sole toenable the hook end to be withdrawn from between the sole and welt,yielding means forwithdrawing the finger, and a pin and bayonet slotdevice for locking the finger against withdrawalfrom between the soleand welt while the hook end is in a position to engage the inner edge ofthe welt and for releasin the finger when the hook end is disengagedfrom the inner edge of the welt and swung towards the sole.

27. In a machine for sewing a sole to the welt of a preweited upper inwhich the outer edge of the sole is greater in length than the outeredge of the flattened welt before attachment thereto, the combination ofwork supporting, guiding and feeding means and stitch forming devices,said guiding means including devices for bringing the 18 outer edges ofthe welt and sole into registry.

28. In a, machine for sewing a sole to the welt of a prewelted upper,the combination of work supporting, guiding and feeding means, stitchforming devices, and means for shifting the welt widthwise along thesole during the sewing.

EDWARD QUINN. ISRAEL I. HERSEY.

